Signature campaign for full RA 9280 implementation eyed

THE Professional Customs Brokers Association of the Philippines, Inc. (PCBAPI) will launch a signature campaign to force the Bureau of Customs to fully implement Republic Act 9280 or the Customs Brokers Act of 2004.

PCBAPI is also looking at asking other professional associations to join its cause. One early supporter is the Visayas-Mindanao Customs Brokers Association.

At the sidelines of PCBAPI’s first national assembly Nilo Casas, president of the Vis-Min association, told PortCalls: “Until the proposed amendments to RA 9280 are passed, the existing law should be enforced (and not) deferred… on grounds that amendments are ongoing.”

Casas said his group will try to obtain up to 3,000 signatures initially from Metro Manila schools offering customs administration courses. More signatures are expected as the campaign goes to the provinces, he added.

“PCBABI and Vis-Min will try this measure first and see how the BOC and the Congress will react to our petition to implement RA 9280 before resorting immediately to legal remedies,” Casas said.

“The legal remedy to force BOC to implement RA 9280… will be our last resort,” he stressed.

RA 9280 enacted on March 30, 2004 regulates the practice of the customs broker profession. It also prohibits corporate practice of customs brokerage. Section 29 of the law provides that the customs broker practice is a professional service and as such, “no firm, company, or association may be registered or licensed as such for the practice of customs broker profession”.

Both Houses of Congress are deliberating on proposed amendments to RA 9280 specifically Sec. 29, in order to allow corporations to clear at customs.